Love Will Tear Us Apart: Geographic Edition

Make elevation maps of any location in the world in the style of Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures album cover (i.e. a ridgeline map) https://t.co/FQ3KSvU0FU

— kottke.org (@kottke) January 8, 2020

(Tip of the cap to Dan Anderson.)

A Beautiful Map of Mathematics

My latest pseudo-mathematical project.... pic.twitter.com/BzNYMw3DEt

— Sam Cohen (@SamCMaths) October 18, 2019

For details of the construction, see this page.

I am — literally! — all over the map.

RIP Mitchell Feigenbaum (1944–2019)

Mathematical physicist Mitchell Feigenbaum, known for his work on the period-doubling route to chaos in the logistic map and other nonlinear phenomena, died over the weekend.

Here is his wikipedia page.

Update (7/18/19): Today, The New York Times published an obituary of Feigenbaum. The first picture in it is fantastic!

Update (7/23/19): Here is a very nice blog entry by Stephen Wolfram about Feigenbaum, his constant, and other bits of Feigenbaum's history.)

A Map of Every Building in America

Wow!

"A MAP OF EVERY
BUILDING IN AMERICA" RT @JenLucPiquant @jswatz: Here is the online version of the big, weird, fun thing I was telling you about yesterday... I loved working on this. https://t.co/loRUJhGJJo

— Marc Abrahams (@MarcAbrahams) October 12, 2018

Playing Mario Kart on Google Maps to Celebrate Mario Day!

In celebration of Mario Day (Mar 10), Google is letting people play a version of Mario Kart on Google Maps.

I have a key question: Where are the best places to inflict lightning bolts on people?

In conclusion, come get some!

(Tip of the cap to Gabrielle Birkman, who indicates that there are places to get banana peels and turtle shells.)

Tolkienesque Maps of National Parks

I approve!

Please, please, please can we do this for university campus maps? That would be so awesome!

An artist is reimagining England’s national parks in the style of J.R.R. Tolkien’s maps https://t.co/Zx3cFjakKj pic.twitter.com/KdnQGI4Qgg

— Andrew Liptak (@AndrewLiptak) February 4, 2018

(Tip of the cap to Peter Dodds.)

A Dozen Ways to Divide the United Kingdom

There is some great snark in here!

A Dozen Ways To Divide The United Kingdom pic.twitter.com/LuMZ8hC3tG

— Terrible Maps (@TerribleMaps) February 1, 2018

(Tip of the cap to Melina Freitag.)

Travel Time from London in 1881

This is really cool!

My favorite part of this visualization is for a trip to Africa, as the rapid change in colors once you arrive on the content very nicely and tersely tells you something about the change in transportation mode (and topography, etc.).

I'm sure there are plenty of other similarly interesting things if one looks closely.

This map shows travel time from London in 1881 pic.twitter.com/CbMNxcDEpu

— Conrad Hackett (@conradhackett) December 23, 2017

(Tip of the cap to Sydney Padua.)

German Caricature Map from 1914

This German caricature map from the onset of World War I is fancy.

(Tip of the cap to I Fucking Love Maps.)

Historical Naval Charts and Maps

The National Maritime Museum (one of the Royal Museums of Greenwich) has a really cool collection of historical sea charts and maps. It would be really cool to do some research involving them!

I found this out via the follow tweet.

This portulan chart is decorated with compass roses, towns, rulers, tents, mountains, animals and ships. #MapMondayhttps://t.co/l4BDRiuQU3 pic.twitter.com/l6lAMceEhA

— Nat. Maritime Museum (@NMMGreenwich) June 26, 2017

(Tip of the cap to Sydney Padua.)

"Survival Bread" and Other Heavily-Pinned Food Items

The most pinned food item (using Pinterest) in Alaska is called "survival bread".

There are several other amusing ones, as you can see in this map.

(Tip of the cap to George Takei.)

Map of Literature's Epic American Road Trips

This visualization of epic American road trips from literature is very cool!

You have walks on networks, you have different ones that you can compare to each other, and you also have descriptions from the authors of these different places.

(Tip of the cap to Bonnie Harland.)

A Map Only a Topologist Would Love

OK, maybe not literally, but I do expect topologists to be fond of this map of the border between Belgium and The Netherlands at Baarle-Nassau.

The complicated border between Belgium and the Netherlands at Baarle-Nassau pic.twitter.com/2eSmkF9xuh

— Amazing Maps (@Amazing_Maps) May 3, 2017

Awesome Infographics and Maps of the 1800s

These maps and infographics from the 1800s are spectacular!

(Tip of the cap to Jessica Flack.)

Most Popular Purchases Online in Each State

Some of these popular online purchases are spectacular, by which I mean "awesome". Wow.

(Tip of the cap to George Takei.)

Maps of Imaginary Places

Take a look at the fantastic maps of imaginary places in this blog entry by Maria Popova.

The Most Lucrative Food Crop in Each State

The most lucrative food crop in each US state
-
Source: The Huffington Post pic.twitter.com/AuO92nr5bU

— Amazing Maps (@Amazing_Maps) February 13, 2017

Note to self: I need to have pecans the next time I go to Santa Fe Institute.
Also: It pleases me that "maple syrup" is the item in Vermont, it's fitting that California is still "grapes", and I had no idea about shrooms in Pennsylvania.

Country Tourism Slogans: Bring on the Mockery

The tourism slogans of most countries merit mockery (and some really merit mockery). For example, under the circumstances, I think the US may seriously want to change its slogan (of which I was not previously aware) of "All within your reach"...

I think my "favorites" are ones like "Tourism for Everybody" (Algeria) — though perhaps this one isn't quite so bad before it's translated? — and ones that rely on pure geographical location, such as Portugal's "Europe's West Coast". Also, Spain deserves special mockery for including a hashtag, and Uzbekhistan just missed a chance to contact the estate of Robert Palmer for some serious endorsement opportunities.

Also, I am seriously into maps with such ripe opportunities for snark.

(Tip of the cap to George Takei.)

Music References on a Map

It will surprise nobody who knows me that I love this map, whose labels consist entirely of music references. I approve!

Some of my favorites are present, of course, though there are others that I wish were included.

(Tip of the cap to I Fucking Love Maps.)

Today's Electoral Map: Make It Stop! (Or Perhaps Existential Dread?)

This electoral map sums up how I feel rather well.

(And I will add: Like living in a Coen Brothers movie and watching a train wreck in slow motion. Just like Brexit.)

(Tip of the cap to Stephanie Vardavas.)